Adopt A Crag

This is an initiative that was the brain child of Mark Vallance. He attempted this sort of thing in the mid seventies. I suspect that the opportunities to chop down trees and excavate entire crags were more plentiful than they are today. We started off with the Mynydd CC from the Peak District, and they were great. They started work on New Mills Torrs and by the end of the day they had eaten me out of all my cakes, and had filled a giant skip with some terrible things which people should be ashamed to have thrown away. Will any other clubs get involved? The opportunity is there, and I wait with baited breath to see the take up.

Classic Jefferson Starship

This album, "Winds of Change" was noticeable for having Grace Slick back on vocals after an "unexplained absence". There was that (in)famous incident in Germany when they were on tour, she was pissed and kept reminding the audience that the lost the war and were responsible for an assortment of war crimes. She was fired immediately and WoC was her first return since that fiasco.

The start of 2008 was similarly booze laden but we didn't upset any Germans. There was a surge of interest in crag clean ups, which are now called "route restorations", and I felt that the last few years are beginning to kick start communal responsibility and action, though we'll have to see how it develops.

Power equals Ivy Watts

I never went out with her, though. You know how some things stick in your mind forever and for no real reason? At school, my physics teacher was called Mr Key, and he had some brilliant mnemonics to remember things by. This doesn't relate to much apart from the fact that when I was hanging off my rope halfway down the classic 'Wogs' at Chudleigh at the weekend, this equation was all I could think of (that and how much the circulation was being cut off in my legs).

The team that Mark Glaister and Ben Hall assembled was as fine a team as you could ever hope for. Fourteen of us removed much of the ivy that had plagued the crag for many years. Crag clearances are all well and good, but it's the sociability that comes from them that is crucial. there's now a bit of a spirit down there that didn't exist a few weeks ago, and this will lead onto many fine things. Expect a Chudleigh Festival sometime next year.

The cake, in case you were wondering, was a chocolate and banana loaf that was the best cake I ever had.The fabulous Mrs Ben Hall was responsible.

"We don't all conform to your stereotypes, moy luvver"

After the inimitable Mike Raine took the lead in Wales, other areas have been following in his mighty footsteps. The thing that has caught the imagination of those who care is regional newsletters. First it was Cymru/Wales, then it was the Midlands, then it was the pastie munchers of the South West. As a first effort, I think it's fine and dandy. The whole point of these newsletters is to provide BMC members in the regions with wholly relevant stuff about where they live. I read 'Climb' and 'Climber' (though I rarely pay for them) and there's never very much I want to read because it isn't relevant to me, you see. Anyway, don't get me started on British climbing magazines, we don't have time.

A nice young man called Scott Collier has produced the first of the South West's newsletters. Read it here. (This was Goal No. 4...No 3 was this blog so you know that I'm actually doing something here at BMC High Command)

FEAR (Future Expectations About Reality)

On the drive up to the Lakes Open Meeting, I had been mostly concerned that there would be too many butties and not enough people. Since Dave 'best boss in the world' Turnbull was in the back of my car I could see the final year of my contract starting and ending in the back room of the Golden Rule. As it turned out, there weren't enough chairs after 60 people turned up to hear me drone on.
I like to maintain a few rules for meetings that I have even the slightest chance of having any say in: 1. Keep it to under an hour 2. Make sure there are some decisions at the end of it 3. Provide food. We managed just over an hour, due to a late substitution from a gentleman known only as "Woody" who was able to revive a bolt debate for about 15mins. There are some pictures of the event on t'internet somewhere (try Cocktalk). At the end of it, we had decided to produce a Lakes Area newsletter (and we had a team assembled at the end of the evening), we had chosen a new (and slightly larger) venue for future meetings (Staveley Beer Hall) and it had also become clear that we would need to get the Lakes National Park into the next meeting to talk about their footpath (repair) policy.

In the end, the event was a success. 60 people, an hour of talk, some shouting, some decisions, no chips but plenty of butties and a feeling amongst those I spoke to that the winds of change that were blowing were much needed.

See you in Staveley on the 28th, then.

Bring a rabbit

At last, the day cometh: Wednesday October 3rd at 7.30pm in the Golden Rule, Ambleside.

We'll talk about bolts, gardening (of the non-Dimmock variety), access restrictions, bolt funds and guidebooks. I suspect that a few people might have something to say about various and assorted footpaths in the area.

I like my meetings to finish within an hour, to make decisions and to be informal. There will be no "Points of order, Mr Chairman" (unless there's too much bloodletting) and I'll feed you if you come along.

See you there, then!

Nice with pickle

We all love a bit of cheese, don't we? Here's some finest Cheddar...Gorge yourself on it!

It's a bit of a weak introduction to news about the South West I'm afraid, but it's all I could manage. The team had their regular meeting last night in the hippy surroundings of The Miner's Arms in St Werburghs, Bristol. Amongst the items up for discussion were the emergence of the SWAT team in Devon, an Avon Gorge clean up and bonfire in November, and some grumbling about bolts in (and out of) Cheddar Gorge. Talking to one of the locals this morning, he seemed to think that the bolting situation in the South West was heading for a denouement at some point soon. There will most likely be some sort of mass meeting about bolting and whatnot before the year is out.

The Avon clean-up is heading your way, as are Saturday evening meetings in nice places that we all want to walk and climb in. The team are looking to turn their open meetings into fun events that lots of people want to come to (radical, but it might just work!)